It doesn't seem all that long ago when I first published Angel's Blood. It was the first time I'd ever done anything of the sort, and boy was it scary! I met Ian D. Moore, the author of Salby Damned, pretty much straight off the bat. He too had not long published his first book and we got talking about all the things that worried us, excited us, and scared the pants off us, and it wasn't too long before we became fast friends. We started texting and calling each other, the other often there at the end of the line offering support and sometimes a much needed kick, or even just being an ear to a vent of frustration, but the friendship grew in leaps and bounds. Often we each found new things to help with our marketing, and, seeing as both of us hadn't a clue, shared them back and forth. I know he received many an email off me containing just the words "Check out" accompanied by a link. Good job he had begun to know me by then. It was Ian that found this particular group of people on Facebook, and true to style messaged me to join him. When we first joined there wasn't too many people on board, but once word got out it filled up rather quickly. It was a group founded by Mr Paul Ruddock, and everyone in there shared experiences, links, and on a general whole supplied any and all help and information to each other they could. It was like finding a pot of gold buried amongst so many that were filled with brass. Soon enough the group felt like a family and personal information started being shared. There were times of joy, times of excitement, and, of course, times of sadness, and everyone in this wonderful group shared each and every step. Unfotunately it was my friend Ian that had a time of sadness when someone close to him succumbed to their battle with cancer, but the whole group rallied and offered whatever they could. Seeing how responsive they were to his plight, and having heard word of an anthology being put together by a some of the other members, Ian put out a call for help on a charity venture of his own in aid of Macmillan Cancer Research in the name of his loved one. He was flooded with responses not only with stories but for help with art work for the cover, editing, marketing, and advertising, and the names of those that worked the hardest will never be forgotten, though are just too many to list. But, to be fair, they all know who they are, and not a one of them did what they did for any recognition of their own. See what I mean about a group of outstanding people? I feel lucky to have been involved with such and amazing group of people, and dived in to help, watching in astonishment as You're Not Alone was born, grew, and was completed. Tom Benson was one of the writers to offer his support in any way he could, and was just one of the ones Ian connected with. He put forth his own story, and was happy to be a go to man offering his advice as time passed. Things happened so fast, and you'd better believe there were downs as well as the ups we enjoyed, that all help was gratefully received. It worked out fantastically well, so much so that there will be another and there have been a whole new load of responses that want to be included on the second time around. It was these three men that decided that the support group could go further, pushing boundaries that none of the others had even attempted, and, with the hint of an idea that Paul came up with, they were off and running. They decided to make website for all the authors in the group, somewhere the authors could advertise their work, and somewhere readers could find new Indie authors works to sample. They worked tirelessly, pushing to get the site completed even though they all had so much more going on in their daily lives, and that's as well as continuing to write. I have to say hats off to you three gentlemen! What you've accomplished is a professional site that's easy to use, and has everything a reader could hope to find, as well as being beautiful designed. Me, a tech challenged beginner, bows down to your superiority in the confusing world of websites. So all you readers out there please feel free to visit and check it out for yourself. You can click on the image (courtesy of Eric Lahti and Ruth Coulson) right here, or at the top of the page, and you are certain to find something you like there's so much to choose from. In fact it might just keep you busy for a good while to come. You'll find books listed in genre, each one in a 3D image so you'll get a real feel for how the book you'll order will look like. Information on the authors of anything that catches your fancy, like links to their individual websites, Facebook pages, and Twitter handles. And, lots more "Interseting Stuff" as these men have put it. But, while you are there, just take a moment to look at the site and see what a lovely job was done on it. You won't find anything anywhere else more professionally done that what was done by these three awesome individuals! So be prepared to be wowed, and be prepared to find a whole lot more reading material, and please feel free to leave a comment, even if it's to say how wonderful the site looks ;), I'm sure they'd love to hear it. Well, I wish each and every one of you a Happy New Year, and I hope 2016 brings you all you could ever wish for. Best wishes, Sallyann.
6 Comments
29/12/2015 07:37:56 pm
A great post Sallyann, and thank you for the recognition given to the admin team. On the subject of recognition, Eric Lahti produced the banner for us, and the new (globe) logo came from Ruth Coulson.
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It was a pleasure Tom. The work you guys have put it to the website has been amazing, and you've worked tirelessly to produce an awesome site to be proud of, and proud to be on. I will adjust it to add Rith though, thank you for the heads up there :).
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Ian D Moore
29/12/2015 10:04:39 pm
Much thanks for the post promotion, chicken. It is quite something to be in the company of so much talent and so many good friends. The site will hopefully continue to grow to become the first port of call to readers of indie authors and a hub for the authors themselves. It is writers like you that make it all worthwhile. Happy New Year to you and family. May 2016 be creative and blessed for you.
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29/12/2015 10:38:35 pm
Many many thanks Sallyann for writing and putting together such a marvellous post. It's been an absolute pleasure working with both the group and now with Tom and Ian's incredible effort and hard work, the IASD site too. Have read some wonderful books by our members and learnt so much from them too... A nicer and more helpful & supportive collective you couldn't hope to meet!
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It was my pleasure. The amout of hard work and effort just couldn't go unnoticed, and I'm sure there are others out there like me that are truly grateful. IASD has become a family of sorts, and the support and camararderie has been second to none. It's been a pleasure from the beginning. Happy New Year to you and yours, and I hope 2016 brings you joy, and all that you wish for.
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I am a wife, mother, and grandmother, and I live in Wales in the U.K. Sallyann Phillips is an IASD member.
Check out their website for a wonderful choice of Indie authors for you to chose from.
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